Almost all of us had to deal with manifestations of helminthiasis. These parasites coexist with humans for so long that Hippocrates himself mentions them in his writings. According to WHO statistics, more than five billion people on Earth are currently affected by various types of helminthiasis.
The pharmaceutical industry regularly produces modern products designed to neutralize parasites in the human body, folk remedies for helminthiasis, complementing traditional treatments, have not lost their relevance.
About helminths
About 250 species of parasites live in human tissues and organs. They are all divided into two classes:
- flatworms (nemotodes);
- roundworms (cestodes and trematodes).
Their size varies from a few millimeters to 10-12 m. The parasites become sexually mature very quickly, after which they acquire the ability to lay from ten to one hundred thousand eggs a day.
These eggs remain viable for a long time, even if the conditions under which they are not the most favorable. Types of organisms affected by parasites, according to the stage of their development:
- the final host in which helminths can develop to puberty;
- an intermediate host where helminths live until one of the stages of their development.
In the body of the final host, the parasite can carry out a full cycle of its development many times and live in it for several decades. For different types of parasites, humans can be both final and intermediate hosts, just as they can be mollusks, fish and predators. According to the type of biological cycle, cases of parasite infestation are classified as:
- biohelminthiasis - the development of helminths takes place in organisms of different types;
- geohelminthiasis - helminth eggs spend part of their development cycle in the soil without an intermediate host.
How does parasite infestation work?
The ways in which helminths enter the human body are very diverse, they depend on social characteristics, natural and climatic factors and dietary preferences. The main ways of infection with helminths:
- Through dirty hands, dirty water, poorly processed food.
- When inhaling dust particles with worm eggs;
- Through the skin;
- After a mosquito bite as an intermediate host (Wuchereria bancrofti);
- When consuming contaminated seafood, meat, fish (trematodes).
The nutritional characteristics of some peoples in the north suggest the use of lightly salted and raw fish for food. In this population, the prevalence of trichinosis and echinococcosis is high.
What organs are affected by helminthiasis
The helminth infestation can be localized in many organs and tissues. The location of the helminth depends on the stage of its development, so the same type of worms at different stages of its existence can parasitize in different parts of the intestine. Organs affected by helminthiasis:
- Colon - roundworms, pinworms;
- Duodenum - Strongyloides stercoralis;
- lymph vessels,
- Lungs - Paragonimidae;
- Subcutaneous tissue - Larva migrans.
- Helminths parasitize in hollow organs and tissues of the human body.
Depending on the location of the parasites, helminthiasis is divided into species:
- tissue (echinococcosis, cysticercosis);
- translucent (teniasis, enterobiosis, ascariasis).
Some of the helminths in the larval stage transform the tissues of the human body, forming capsules or granules around themselves (Trichinella, Toxocara). There are species of helminths that migrate in the larval stage and under the skin of man, and in the tissues of his organs (larval helminths).
Their temporary stay in the human body takes both visceral and cutaneous form, for them man is an intermediate host.
Clinical manifestations of helminthiasis
Like many other infections, helminthiasis goes through two stages of development: acute and chronic. Their duration:
- acute stage - from 2-3 weeks to several months;
- chronic stage - from 2-3 months to several years.
Despite the variety of helminth species and their location, the symptoms of the acute stage have common manifestations - these are symptoms of allergies and toxic effects on the human body:
- slight increase in temperature;
- muscle pain
- skin rash
- swelling of the limbs,
- enlarged lymph nodes,
- dyspepsia,
- enlargement of the spleen and liver,
- CNS damage.
The laboratory blood test shows a change in its formula - eosinophilia is diagnosed and a significant increase in the number of leukocytes. The transition of helminthiasis to a chronic stage is characterized by symptoms that depend on which organ is affected by parasites, the stage of development of worms, their number and variety. The following symptoms are diagnosed in the chronic stage of helminthiasis:
- dyspepsia and intestinal pain,
- intestinal obstruction,
- colitis in hemorrhagic form,
- anemia,
- beriberi,
- drastic weight loss
- obstructive jaundice, hepatitis (with liver damage),
- loss of some functions of the central nervous system (with localization of parasites in the brain),
- inflammatory diseases of the pelvic organs (when pinworms migrate into the vagina),
- gastric and intestinal ulcers (with chronic strongyloidiasis),
- damage to muscle tissue, formation of granulomas in the capillaries of the brain (with severe trichinosis),
- damage to the lymphatic system (when infected with nematodes).
Not only do liver cysts cause helminthiasis caused by echinococci, but the parasites can damage bone tissue. This makes the bones fragile and creates an additional risk of bone fractures. Defeat of the human body by the larvae of Dirofilaria repens takes the form of a subcutaneous nodule containing parasites. This node is able to move in the thickness of the skin and mucous membranes.
Analyzing the symptoms of helminthiasis, you can be sure that there is no stable clinical picture of this disease, there are no clear specific signs.
Diagnosis of parasitic invasion
If you do not make an accurate diagnosis in time, you may miss the time when the treatment started could be most effective.
The transition from acute to chronic helminthiasis often masks the true cause of the disease.
Parasite infection can be mistaken for symptoms of completely different diseases.
It is extremely important not to self-medicate, but to seek medical help from an infectious disease specialist or parasitologist. In his arsenal there are enough modern methods for diagnosing parasitic infection:
- laboratory examination of feces, bile, sputum, blood, urine, rectal and
- anal scraping of mucus, duodenal contents to detect parasites, their eggs and larvae;
- Ultrasound, radiography;
- Endoscopy, endobiopsy.
The most effective method is considered to be a serological test - a method for analyzing blood serum for the presence of antigen to infection with certain types of helminths.
This test can show the presence of parasites even in the early stages of infection.
Treatment of parasitic infection with folk methods
According to the results of the diagnosis, the doctor prescribes anthelmintic therapy, the time of the control examination after treatment.
All the recommendations of a specialist should be followed carefully to avoid complications.
Needless to remind about the observance of preventive hygiene measures that will prevent infection of family members with parasites and secondary infection.
Proponents of the use of folk recipes should remember that the use of these funds is an ancillary method that does not replace drug treatment.
Like medicines, traditional medicines have contraindications and side effects. Therefore, it is worth discussing this method with your doctor before using them. Home remedies:
- Intake of peeled pumpkin seeds for 2 weeks, preserving the thin green rind of the seeds.
- Decoction of the bark removed from a pomegranate in 3/4 tbsp boiling water. The drug is taken on an empty stomach, this should be done for an hour and a half, and the broth is divided into three doses. After a few hours, be sure to stimulate the stool with each laxative.
- Enemas with freshly squeezed carrot juice (40 ml) should be done daily for 7 days.
- Regular use of garlic and preparations containing it.
- The introduction of a whole clove of garlic into the rectum (against enterobiosis).
- Taking freshly prepared garlic juice (10-15 ml) together with warm milk (1 cup), the mixture should be drunk on an empty stomach, the drug should be repeated 1-2 times a day.
- Infuse 50 g of a mixture of garlic and grated horseradish root in half a liter of vodka. The mixture is infused for 1, 5 weeks, filtered. Mandatory dose - 1 tbsp. l. before each meal, the infusion should be washed. Effective in giardiasis.
- An enema with garlic paste, taken shortly before bedtime, is effective for pinworms and tapeworms. Enema solution: mix in a glass of water 1 tsp finely chopped garlic. Spend regularly throughout the week.
- Decoction of 2 cloves garlic, 2 tablespoons milk, 1 tablespoon dried tansy flowers are applied as an enema. The enema mixture should be boiled for about 10 minutes. Perform 7 times, the effect of treatment can be fixed by repeating the course after a ten-day break.
Herbs and fees:
- 1 teaspoon of wormwood is poured 400 ml (2 tablespoons) of boiling water, filtered and cooled, take a decoction of 1-2 tbsp three times a day before each meal. Effective in ascariasis and enterobiosis.
- Tansy (1 tablespoon dried flowers) and 0, 5 liters of boiling water are left for 3 hours and placed as an enema in the rectum at bedtime. The drug is contraindicated in pregnant women and children.
- Infusion for half an hour of 4 tbsp. l. unripe walnuts and a glass of salted boiling water is filtered and taken simultaneously with a laxative. Effective against tapeworm, ascariasis, enterobiosis.
- 1 tbsp tansy flowers are poured 200 ml of boiling water, an hour later the infusion is filtered. The frequency of admission is standard - Art. l. 20 minutes before eating. So you need to be treated for 2-3 days, finish the infusion with a laxative.
- Decoction of 1 kg of sorrel and 1 liter of boiling water boil for 2 hours (it is better to do in a water bath), filter, to it should be added a few tablespoons of sugar. The volume of the finished product is 1 cup of broth, you should drink 1-2 sips a day before meals.
- Helminthiasis is a complex infection with a multicomponent clinical picture. They can cause serious complications, cause irreversible damage to human health.
It is unacceptable to treat yourself when you are infected with parasites. Folk recipes should be used with extreme caution, only as an adjunct to drug therapy.